A local exercise in diverse storytelling

What's Your Story?

Published 4:00 am, Sunday, July 11, 2010

Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

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Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

A local exercise in diverse storytelling

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July 3 was a perfect farmers' market day. At Oakland's Grand Lake Farmers' Market near Lake Merritt, the crowd was characteristically diverse and people were friendly, relaxed, enjoying the warm, sunny weather.

The scene contrasted sharply with what the rest of the country probably envisioned, having been alerted that Oakland was on the verge of exploding into riots when the jury reached a verdict in the BART fatal shooting trial. Of course, it's pretty standard for the city's image to differ dramatically from its reality.

As it turned out five days later, the jury found former BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the killing of 22-year-old Oscar Grant. The New Year's Eve 2009 shooting, recorded by cell phone video, depicted a white cop killing an African American male lying face down with his hands behind his back. Much of Oakland was profoundly disappointed that Mehserle was not convicted of second-degree murder, but the majority of the protesters were nonviolent. A breakaway group whom the police called anarchists broke windows, lighted fires and looted some stores. When the dust cleared, some 80 people had been arrested, but no injuries were reported. Oakland breathed a sigh of relief.

But on the Saturday I was out, it was quiet. It wasn't that the people at the farmers' market were oblivious to the trial and the pending verdict; it probably was on every Oaklander's mind. Rather, they understand there is more than one reality in Oakland, and they can hold several truths about the city in their minds simultaneously.

I was out interviewing people for a new media project - What's Your Story? - the Bay Area Story Project, a collaboration between The San Francisco Chronicle and KALW public radio station. The idea is to travel around the Bay Area and talk to people, capturing their stories, experiences, concerns, dreams and ideas. It's an attempt to paint a more inclusive and personalized portrait of our area.

After writing for newspapers for more than three decades, I've grown more interested in the direct comments of the people I interview, unfiltered by a reporter's interpretation and emphasis. Traditionally, reporters interview people, choose quotes and place them within a news story. In recent years I've become increasingly intrigued by the way people express themselves - the rhythms of their speech, the way they organize their thoughts and reactions. I think those characteristics add meaning to the actual words we speak and offer a richer and more nuanced picture of the speakers, their thoughts and feelings.

What's Your Story? uses this approach. I still ask the questions, but I step back from the presentation of the answers and let people speak for themselves.

Last Saturday, I asked two questions to start the conversation:

"What brings you to the farmers' market besides the produce?" and "Do you find Oakland attractive? If so, why?"

Just by randomly approaching people, I collected interviews from a widely diverse group, including an Asian American, an Asian Canadian, whites, African Americans and an Iranian American. There were young families who came to the market so their children could play in the fountain, a lesbian couple who loves the variety of produce and the social interaction, and a middle-aged white couple who usually go to the Temescal market closer to home. Of 12 people interviewed, only two were Bay Area natives.

I know Oaklanders love their town, but even I was surprised by the passion they expressed. Almost all of them said they wouldn't live anywhere else. A couple of them admitted that they'd had misgivings about moving to the city and then, after living there, wondered what they possibly could have been thinking. One woman told a story familiar to residents who travel. While abroad, she and her husband met another Bay Area couple. When they said they were from Oakland, the other couple said they surely must mean Piedmont. When they said, "No, we live in Oakland," the other couple recoiled, almost as if they thought the Oakland couple would attack them. Several people said they love their neighborhood and found community in Oakland.

Everyone mentioned the city's diversity as a major asset, and when asked, tried to explain why diversity was important to them. Sometimes the explanations sounded like an attempt to explain why water is important. Or air.

But there I go. I'm telling you what they said when you can hear for yourselves. You can listen to the interviews at sfgate.com/blogs/opinionshop and add your comments and reactions.

I'm interested in your reaction to the concept of this project, as well as suggestions for locations to conduct interviews and topics you would like to see explored. And if you see me out with my digital recorder, please, tell me your story.

At the core of the project are two beliefs: 1) people are inherently interested in people and 2) storytelling is basic and powerful - learning about each other's stories will connect us and help us build our communities together.